Burning the Edges
by daydreaming.dauntless
Summary: Demi never knew she had a twin, until she met Hal. Hal, who rescued her, thinking she was his girlfriend. And she can't help but be grateful to this mysterious Karen for leaving him behind, no matter how much he seems to despise her.
1. Summary

**Title:**

**Author: Brielle Montegomery**

**Hal/OC, Falling Skies fan fiction**

**Long summary: **Demetria Courtney never knew she had a twin. She never would have, if it hadn't been for the invasion. She never would have, if Hal Mason had never rescued her from the skitter's grasp, mistaking her for his beloved girlfriend. And she never would have met him, never would've dealt with his anger and almost hatred toward her. If only she hadn't been Karen Nadler's twin, she wouldn't have ever lived her life. She wouldn't know that something horrible was coming, something that would eclipse the aliens themselves. She wouldn't come back alive, find her place in the world as it is now, and fall in love just in time for it to all fall apart.


	2. Introduction

**Thank you everyone, for reading! This is only the intro, so it's short, but there will be more if you just click the next button (: **

**Introduction**

"It's all kind of a blur. It's not that I couldn't see… I _could, _I just couldn't understand any of it. I could see the colors, the shapes, but it didn't matter because I was on the outside looking in; I had no control.

"I don't remember exactly how it happened. I was with my parents when the ships came and then they were missing, but it's hazy because they put that thing on my back. It was like seeing through a sheet…And my muscles were too stiff to move anyway, so I just gave in…gave up. And I couldn't comprehend what was happening, because my head was kind of fuzzy, so I couldn't be sad about anything. And maybe that was better, because I didn't have to _feel _the loss and I was just kind of floating through my…existence.

"It never hurt much, at least I don't think it did. The thing on my back, I mean. The harness. It was just like I was sleeping…so I didn't _feel the pain, anyway, until after…"_

_They stare at me, with a mixture of disgust and fascination, and my empty eyes bore into theirs. If only they knew…_


	3. Fading

**Short, and there's still more if you click the next button…(: Thanks!**

**Chapter One**

**28 Hours Earlier**

There's a bright light shining in my face and I can faintly hear the name "Karen" being called toward me…But there's a humming in my ears and my vision is cloudy and my head feels like it's on the verge of explosion.

"Hal, she'll…when she's able…and you can…then." Fading in and out, it's a woman's voice, I think. And then I realize I can think, though my thoughts are muddy and nearly incoherent. And I can…_feel. Because there's a warmth spreading through my back, but the rest of me is dead cold._

_It isn't long before I'm sucked into the darkness again, pain blocking out the light. I wish…_


	4. Human

**Continue clicking the next button…(:**

**Chapter Two**

**6 Hours Earlier**

It's those lights again, startling me awake, wrenching me up in my place. I gasp and sputter, spitting out the pool of saliva in my mouth. There are voices around me, but I'm struggling to hear and all my eyes can take in is the light.

Experimenting, I try to twitch my fingers, to bend them. There's a commotion a little bit away from me when I do this, and a man shouting, and a crashing sound that jumbles my thoughts all over again. I may as well be blind for all the good my vision's doing me.

There's a slight pressure on my forehead, and someone's saying, "Karen," over and over again, into my ears, but I can't figure out why. So I close my eyes, because I can't _see anyway, and tune out the noise and the feelings and focus on the darkness._

_I can't remember what happened to me. I'm confused by the onslaught of…sensation and it's so different, so seemingly new, that it's puzzling me._

_It doesn't make any sense…but those voices are human, I know. Humans and human names and human bodies and human language. And I am…What am I? I can't quite remember._


	5. Beauty

**This is the last of the really short chapters, I promise. Keep reading! I will update soon! (:**

**Chapter Three**

**1 Hour Earlier**

I open my eyes and stare above me in wonder. I can see…I mean, _really _see and the colors seems so vivid compared to the dullness of my previous state.

"Karen?" There's that name again, spoken by a boy. A teenager. A man. I don't know. A mixture of all three, with the worry and fright and gentleness all in his voice.

_I turn my head around, toward him, and his is breath-taking. His cheeks are smudged with grime and his dark hair is greasy, but he is indescribably beautiful and I stare at him wide-eyed, I know, unable to help myself._

"_Karen?" He calls again, softly, staring into my eyes, tears spilling over his._

"_Who's Karen?" It's a gruff whisper, my throat raw and burning. "Who is she?"_


	6. Demetria

**Here's the next chapter! (: It's still pretty short, but I'll update soon, I promise.**

**Chapter Four**

**47 Minutes Earlier**

He stares at me. Blankly, unfeeling, unemotional. Staring. And then in a rough whisper, _full_ of emotion, "Karen? Don't do this. You know who you are. You can't forget...Don't you remember me?"

I shake my head in silence, my eyes inspecting him, trying to take from it an explanation to his behavior.

"Karen, just stay here. I'll get Anne."

He starts to walk away, but I utter one word.

"Demetria," I say.

He tilts his head toward me, not fully turning around.

"My name is Demetria." It's a soft whisper, barely audible. "Demetria, not Karen."

He shakes his head. "Your name is Karen. I don't know what they did to you, but your name is Karen. I know that."

"How?" My voice wavers, almost breaking just on that one word.

He finally turns back to me. "You really don't remember?"

I shake my head again, rendered speechless by the look he's giving me. Full of despair and almost…love.

He practically shouts, "I was your boyfriend."

I am truly confused by now. I know for a fact he was never my boyfriend. I would've remembered something as significant as that. "You weren't. I've never had a boyfriend. I wasn't allowed to date."

"Karen, I was. I promise. I would _never _lie to you."

"Okay," I say simply. He's upset, I can see, and I don't want to upset him any longer.

He looks at me, up and down, for a moment, then sighs and walks out the door.

I am _not _Karen. I've never known a Karen in my life. My name is Demetria Courtney, I remember. Not Karen. My name has never been Karen.

**Reviews are always appreciated! Thanks to everyone who has reviewed so far!**


	7. Twins

**Chapter Five**

**23 Minutes Earlier**

Demetria Courtney. Demetria Courtney. The name swirls around in my head, with the power of it. If I can remember my name, I can remember everything else just as easy, I know. I just need a…trigger.

Looking around the room, I realize I have no desire to wait. I want to get out of here. I don't remember anyone; especially not that boy.

I push up from the stiff cot, my legs feeling wobbly as I stand up. Experimentally, I press one foot to the ground, putting minimal pressure on it and when I find my legs don't give out, I put the other on in front of it. Right foot, left foot, right foot, left foot. I'm standing in front of the door when I look down. Good. I'm fully clothed.

I nudge the door open and peer into the hallway. There are a few people walking by and they stare at me, eyes wide open, as they pass. What's so different about me? Or…do they think they recognize me? I continue to look around the hall for a moment and then head right, following the other people.

"Karen!" I hear the name being called behind me and I wonder if I should answer to that. It's what everyone thinks my name is. I'm still trying to decide when someone puts a hand on my shoulder, pulling me toward them, into a tight hug.

I politely push the person away, looking up at them. It's a woman, with a stethoscope around her neck. "Karen? Hal told me you were awake, but he wouldn't say anything else."

Tears start to build up in the corner of my eyes. I shake my head. It's all too much; it's overwhelming. "I'm not Karen," I mutter.

She puts an arm around my shoulder and carefully says, "Okay. Come on back to the clinic and we'll talk about it."

I nod silently and let her lead me back, her hand gently on my shoulder.

**1 Minute Earlier**

Anne, as she has introduced herself as, hands me a cup of tea, steaming hot. I watch the clouds drift upwards and disappear; I'm avoiding the question.

"What was it like? Do you remember?" She repeats. She doesn't sound pushy; she truly just wants to know.

We're joined by another girl, maybe a year older than me, who sits on the cot next to us, watching. There's a look in her eyes, and I can't tell exactly what it is in the dimly lit room, but I get the feeling she doesn't like me. Or doesn't like who she thinks I am.

"It's all kind of a blur. It's not that I couldn't see… I could, I just couldn't understand any of it. I could see the colors, the shapes, but it didn't matter because I was on the outside looking in; I had no control.

"I don't remember exactly how it happened. I was with my parents when the ships came and then they were missing, but it's hazy because they put that thing on my back. It was like seeing through a sheet…And my muscles were too stiff to move anyway, so I just gave in…gave up. And I couldn't comprehend what was happening, because my head was kind of fuzzy, so I couldn't be sad about anything. And maybe that was better, because I didn't have to feel the loss and I was just kind of floating through my…existence.

"It never hurt much; at least I don't think it did. The thing on my back, I mean. The harness. It was just like I was sleeping…so I didn't feel the pain, anyway, until after…"

They stare at me, with a mixture of disgust and fascination, and my empty eyes bore into theirs.

If only they knew…

I shake the thought from my head. "I'm not Karen." The words feel old and overused in my mouth. I've said this several times already.

Anne stares off into blank space for a second and looks back at me. "I…I don't know how to ask you this, but…do you know if you were possibly adopted?"

I give her a strange look, wondering how she could've known. The idea was fairly new to me, but in the past few years, with my parents…I had started to suspect something. They had never told me.

"It's just…" She continues, struggling for the right words, though she previously had always seemed to know what to say. "I never talked with Karen about it much…but she said her parents had told her that she had a sister they had put up for adoption. And, they never specified how old she would be, or where she was now, because Karen didn't want to know."

"What are you saying?" I ask, my lips curving into a small frown.

She sighs. "I don't know for sure, but you look exactly like her. Exactly. It's unbelievable how similar you two are. And, you look like…you're the same age."

The gears in my mind are working as fast as they can, but I'm not grasping what she's saying.

The teenage girl, Lourdes, I think her name was, is looking at me with a different expression. Sympathy and worry about me, now. I stare right back at her and she says, very quietly…

"Demetria, I think you are Karen Nadler's twin."


	8. Comprehension

I'm taken aback by this for a second and I look at her in bewilderment. "Twin?" I question. "No, my parents would have told me if that was the case."

They both raise their eyebrows at me and I shake my head. It's just...it's not really possible, but it makes too much sense to ignore. The way my parents ignored the issue, the way everyone here was surprised to see me and stared, the way...the way Hal acted. If he thought I was his girlfriend, that would make sense when it came to how odd he'd been, and his insistence that I knew who he was.

It's too much to grasp. I can't wrap my head around this news, so I ask for a sure way to find out.

"Well, if we weren't in the middle of an alien invasion, we could do a DNA test, maybe looks at some records from the adoption or from the hospital when you were born, but considering the situation...I think we'll have to go on looks alone and the fact that you think you were adopted," Anne explains. She seems to have given up on breaking news to me gently, and I almost appreciate the fact.

"So...what do I do?" I ask, confused.

Anne shrugs, "There's nothing you can do. If you're Karen's twin, then you're Karen's twin. She's not here. She's harnessed and has been for a long time."

"Oh." I think about it. "So...when you found me...you thought I was her? Why don't you...give me back?"

Lourdes, the other girl, breaks in. "Why would we do something like that?"

"Because...you can't...you don't want to waste supplies on someone you don't know, right?" I'm perplexed.

Anne says, "It's not like that here. You are completely welcome, because we want to help whoever we can, whatever the circumstances. Now...it may take some getting used to, living here. The people here knew Karen, and you look just like her, so...there may be some confusion, and maybe even some anger, for a little while."

It's kind of overwhelming. They're saying things I can't understand. I mean, my whole life has been dumped upside down, as if it wasn't already confusing before, and now they were talking about living here and adjusting. I couldn't think about all of that just yet.

Anne sees my face and says, quite kindly, "If you want to take a while to get a grip on all of this, we can leave you alone for a bit...I'm sure some of the soldiers have wounds to attend to."

"If you could..." I trail off.

They both get up, excusing themselves and I finally have a moment to breathe.

A few tears escape my eyes, because I'm thinking of my parents. It all seems so distant, but now I know they're gone and I can't help them. It's awful, losing someone you love, but now both of the people I loved the most are dead; and I'll never see them again.

I put my head in my hands and think about the situation.

I hear a clearing of a throat behind me. I think I know who it is, but I don't want to turn around, because I'm worried he'll be angry and sad, or maybe both. Surely Anne told him about me, and how I am not Karen.

"Hal," I say, turning around.

Sure enough, it's him.


	9. Stuck

The pain in his eyes is almost unbearable. Dark chocolate, burning. It's enough to break my heart into a million pieces, all shattering around me as they drop to the floor. How can my existence hurt someone so much?

I stare at him, wide-eyed. Terrified. The outcome of the situation is…unpredictable. And I'm not sure that I'm used to that. I think I must have been very good at math before, very good at measuring probability and…predictability, although I can't remember little details like that.

"Hal," I repeat, my voice full of grief, my face etched in sorrow that not even I fully understand. How can I feel like this? Emotion seems so foreign and so strong and so out of place in my alien body. And then it strikes me again that I am human, not alien.

"I saved you," he whispers brokenly. "Took you from them. Ben got hurt, badly too, to reach you."

"I'm sorry," I say, the words fervent and sincere. It doesn't make me feel any better, and it certainly doesn't make the boy in front of me feel any better. His face contorts in anguish, so plainly visible that my heart aches and aches for this person I don't even know.

He shakes his head. _Again and again and again._ And he doesn't say another word to me for seconds, and then minutes. He just stares at me, with a half-dreaming look on his face. "Karen," he says finally, his voice resting on the word that he keeps repeating. The whisper so breathy, I can almost see it in the air in front of me, between him and me.

"Demetria," I say just as quietly, just as breathily, and just as pained.

"No," he protests quietly, muttering her name again. He leans back on the hospital cot behind him, like a crippled soldier, and I can feel his heart snapping and twisting and burning. "She didn't tell me about having a sister."

"I don't think she knew," I reply softly, finally taking my gaze off Hal and fixing it on the floor.

"This is your fault." He says, his tone hardening and when I glance up at him, taken aback by his words, I see he has a new determination in his voice.

"If you weren't here, Ben might be healthy. And Karen might be with us. Why did you come to ruin us?" He accuses, his words growing louder and louder. The anger is clear on his countenance, and I cringe away from the boy in fear, wrapping my arms around my knees on the cot.

"I didn't mean to- I'm sorry- I've-I've—" I break into heavy sobs, tears falling freely down my cheeks as I stare helplessly at the boy in front of me. Why won't the words force themselves out? And why can't he see the person in front of him? _Why is he so blind?_

He crosses toward me, eyes never leaving my face, and stops when he's a mere six inches away. He towers over my shrunken frame. My eyes don't leave his, and for a second, as he looks at me, I see his eyes soften. And then, out of nowhere…

He pulls back his hand and swipes it hard against my cheek, leaving a stinging, burning sensation behind.

"Hal!" I hear exclaimed from the doorway. "Hal, don't you dare touch her again."

I look up through blurred vision to see a distorted Anne in the room, and I vaguely hear her scolding Hal, and soldiers coming in to escort them out. My hand pulls up to touch my check, swelling rapidly.

He slapped me, hard, across the face. In his pain and anguish, he stuck me with a painful blow.

And the scary part is, I can't blame him. I blame myself.

He's right. _I did this to him._


	10. Spine

**To fsfan, the guest who reviewed:**

**First off, thank you for the review! I'm glad you're enjoying the story aside from your concerns about Hal's actions…**

**And now to address those concerns: I know that it seems very unlikely for any of the Mason boys to resort to violence toward women. They are very respectful, that's true, but Hal's actions in last chapter are really meant to point out the state that Hal is in. Hal is confused, angry, and saddened all at once, and he's really not in his right state of mind at that point. Him hitting Demi is meant to show how truly broken he is (over Karen, the appearance of Demi, the disappearance of Tom, the injury of Ben, and all of those things), and how he really can't comprehend his actions at the time. Morals and inhibitions can go out the window when someone is feeling so worn down and confused- he's at the end of his wits here. Trust me, Hal will feel horrible about it later- he'll be horrified at himself!- but he's not thinking clearly then, and it's meant to show the heartbreak that's going on, not only for Hal, but for Demi as well.**

**And with that, I shall get on with the story!**

She gently presses down on my cheek once more, the coolness of the cloth spreading onto my hot skin. There's an intense swelling in the side of my face, and nothing seems to be stopping it. It's as if my guilt is what's really filling the bump.

I try to give the doctor a grateful smile, but I'm sure the corners of my mouth are turned downward as I do so, and I turn away from her. I withdraw into myself, wrapping my arms up around my knees, making myself as small as possible. It's comforting; in the way it is to be wrapped up in the arms of a mother.

I tilt my head up to look at the lights emanating from the ceiling. They've become a sort of fixation point for me. After being in the darkness for so long, with a veil over my eyes and a knife in my heart, I want to absorb all the light I can before I return to the overwhelming midnight blackness. I was stuck in it for so long, my return seems almost…inevitable.

You don't ever really get away from them, though you might think you do.

And the fact that I can't even comprehend my own humanity…well, that could get me killed before they return for me. These humans have been hardened by loss, and are wary of anything that could pose a threat to those remaining. I can't blame them for their hatred.

And this brings me back to Hal, and his words and actions and his terrifyingly honest emotion in his eyes. It was almost easier to be behind that veil, and not be able to feel a single emotion- no sadness or anger or anything. No guilt. Because this guilt is something I don't think I can bear.

"It's not your fault," the woman next to me speaks up, in a quiet and careful voice. "Hal's going through a lot. And while that gave him no right to touch you…he was hurting before you came along, but he was bottling it up. He's a good kid, just put in a bad situation."

"And I've made it worse," I whisper, my voice hitching all through the words. I'm brought to that question again: How can my existence bring so much pain to one human being?

"Your arrival just set it off, but none of that is your fault. Really, it's no one's fault. We all just have to try and move on from what makes us sad these days. Dwelling doesn't help, but everyone gets stuck doing it anyway."

"Emotions are so confusing," I say in a bewildered tone, tugging at the ends of my hair. "How do you deal with them? It's been so long since I've felt anything, and now…I seem to feel _everything._"

Anne doesn't say anything; she just reaches toward me, presumably to pat my hand or my arm, in a comforting gesture. But my body won't allow this, and my natural reflexes kick in.

Before I know it, I've practically flipped over backwards, landing on my feet behind the medical table we were both sitting on. I stare at her cautiously.

She just shakes her head sadly, but smiles at me a little, and excuses herself from the room. The only person to be able to tolerate me in this place and I've scared her off. I don't understand the way human life works anymore.

"Demi?" It's a soft voice, spoken from the doorway Anne just left out of. I turn my head to see a boy with dark blonde hair striding toward me, a tiny gait in his walk indicating an apparent injury.

"Yes?" I reply guardedly, staring at the boy as he comes closer to me.

"I'm Ben." When I continue to stare at him with no flicker of recognition in my eyes, he explains, "Hal's brother."

"Oh." I turn away from him, perhaps so that he doesn't see the glimmer of tears forming, or maybe because I'm scared of what he'll do as he looks at my face and thinks of Karen.

"I'm sorry for what he did. He's really not so bad. Maybe once he gets used to you being around…" Ben trails off, and takes a seat on my previous resting place.

"Were you the one who was injured?" I ask, eyeing his leg, and trying to ignore his reassurance. As if anything he said could make me feel better. It seems humanity comes with all the negative feelings and none of the positive.

"Oh, yeah…But, I heal fast, you know, because of the—" He cuts off and just gestures toward his back, a blush creeping onto his cheeks. I peer at him curiously, my turmoil forgotten for a split second.

"The what?"

He turns around and just barely pulls his shirt almost over his head, revealing a line of protrusions coming from his back. Directly along his spine, it seems.

I reach a hand to the back of my neck and realize that I have the same things. Is this how the people recognize us as what we are? I don't know how I hadn't noticed their presence before.

"What do they do?"

He turns around, tugging his shirt back into place. "Well, they're what's left of the harness. So…we're…stronger than other kids. We can hear better, see better, heal faster. And…" He trails off and looks at me nervously. "We can hear their frequencies."

I put my head in my hands for a moment and then say, "That's bad." I shake my head again and again, not looking up at the boy in front of me. "That's horrible. They'll…We're not free. I need to talk to someone who's in charge. They need to know."

"They need to know what?" The words are said quickly, quietly, concerned.

"Something very bad will happen to these people if we stay here with them for much longer. Or at least…if I do." I stare at the lights again, transfixed. I might have to head back to the darkness even sooner than I had thought. _That's what it means. What the tall ones were talking about. _

If my assumption is correct, there's not much time.


End file.
